Press Release: NASA And The Department of Commerce Join Forces To Collaborate On SpaceCom Conference

April 5, 2019

HOUSTON – SpaceCom, America’s Commercial Space Conference and Exposition, announced that the Department of Commerce’s (DOC) Office of Space Commerce (OSC) will join NASA and the commercial space industry in collaborating on the development of SpaceCom 2019.

SpaceCom’s mission is to be a bridge between all stakeholders in this new commercial space market. In a recent op-ed, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross noted that the global space economy can reach $1 trillion in value, but how do we get there? With Kevin O’Connell, director of the DOC’s Office of Space Commerce joining SpaceCom’s Advisory Board and Executive Committee, SpaceCom will ensure it is the place to discuss the private sector commercial space opportunities, as well as the workforce needed, for this market to reach its full potential.

In the wake of Vice President Pence’s recent announcement regarding human exploration, Douglas Terrier, chief technologist at NASA said, “As NASA focuses on landing humans on the moon within five years, transitioning NASA’s low-Earth orbit activities to private industry needs to accelerate.” SpaceCom is the event where the business stakeholders can come together and advance this transition.

Dr. Vernon McDonald, senior vice president at KBRwyle and chair of SpaceCom’s Advisory Board echoes the above sentiments. He noted, “all industries, from energy to logistics to hospitality, have new growth opportunities in space commercialization. SpaceCom allows these industry attendees to engage in discussions around policy, finance, technology development and partnerships to create a resilient and diversified commercial space economy.”

Kevin O’Connell, Douglas Terrier, and Dr. Vernon McDonald all serve on the SpaceCom Advisory Board and Executive Committee which helps shape the direction of SpaceCom’s program and overall direction of the show.

SpaceCom 2019 is at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, TX, November 20-21. To learn more or join our mailing list to be notified when registration opens, please visit www.spacecomexpo.com.